Cooking up Smiles..Across the Miles

Tag Archives: cucumber

Summer is at its peak in our part of the world and we are making the most of it. Summer also means outings, picnics and potlucks. This black bean salad that I am sharing with you today is my favorite summer salad. The best part about this salad is that you can pre-make it (How awesome is that..!!), serve it at room temperature and is light and healthy. Perfect for the summer days when you don’t want to spend too much time in the kitchen. 😀

So get your picnic basket ready and enjoy this light summer treat. Its good with chips, or make it a meal by wrapping it in some tortillas or top it on a toast. So delicious 😛

Here is how I make this yummy and healthy salad

Ingredients:

Black beans – 2 cans, 15 oz, drained and well rinsed (You can also pressure cook your choice of beans and use in the recipe)

We are always looking for easy appetizer options while entertaining people. Its so much more fun to enjoy the food together, rather than laboring for hours in the kitchen. These cucumber rolls are such a fabulous option. You can make them in minutes and they are such a delightful treat. One look and you know, summer is right here.

I wasn’t planning on doing a blog post for this one, just cause its such an easy dish, pretty self explanatory. But then it occurred to me, I would not have thought about it, had someone not posted this idea. So thanks to you, here is what I came up with.

The ingredients are pretty simple:

cucumber – 1, fresh, English cucumber preferred

Hummus – 2 tbsp., more or less, as per taste

Salt and pepper to taste

paprika – for garnish

Here is how to assemble this:

Peel thin slices of cucumber using a potato peeler. You can also keep them in ice cold water to maintain the crunch. Just pat them dry before assembling.

Take a slice of cucumber and generously spread some hummus on top with a butter knife. You can make your own hummus here or use store bought.

Season the hummus with some salt and pepper.

Finally roll the cucumber slice, making sure the filling does not ooze out.

Repeat similarly for all the slices.

Sprinkle some paprika on top and serve immediately.

You can keep the peeled cucumber slices and hummus ready and roll them up just before serving as they tend to get soggy after some time.

Some other great filling options are guacamole, flavored Greek yogurt, hung curd or even some finely sliced carrots or bell pepper. Feel free to use your creativity and create new versions every time.

So there you have it, one of the easiest and quickest appetizer. Do try it at your next get-together. Or just make one for yourself. Enjoy this healthy delight.